Research Center for Group Dynamics

Highlighted Current RCGD Research:

The Hidden Costs of War:
Middle East violence and its effect on children

Jerome Johnston was appointed director of the Research Center for Group Dynamics.
Phoebe Ellsworth (RCGD Faculty Associate) is noted in Detroit Free Press article, Holdout juror in Bobby Ferguson trial didn't tell the whole truth.
Emily Falk (RCGD Faculty Associate) was selected as a 2012 NIH Director's New Innovator Award recipeint.
Denise Sekaquaptewa (RCGD Faculty Associate) is noted in article, Overtly ‘girly’ scientists alienate potential students! published in New Scientist.
Jacque Eccles (RCGD Research Professor). Jacque has been selected to receive the 2012 American Psychological (APA) Award for Distinguished Service to Psychological Science. This award recognizes individuals who have made outstanding contributions to psychological science through their commitment to a culture of service. She has also been elected as the next President of APA Division 7 (Developmental Psych Division).
Research conducted by Pamela Davis-Kean (RCGD Research Associate Professor) and published in Psychological Science is highlighted in CBS Detroit article, Fractions are key to math success.
Sean Joe (RCGD PRBA Associate Director of Research & Training) was selected by the Society of Social Work and Research to serve as a fellow at the Roundtable on Science in Social Work. The purpose of the roundtable is to set an intellectual agenda for the social work profession in the 21st century.
Sara Konrath (RCGD Research Asst Professor) is pleased to announce that two of her students–Adam Sitzmann and Ian Clark–won the top research award at the Stanford Undergraduate Psych Conference. This is the first time someone from the University of Michigan has won this award. They were the top team out of over 150 presenters.
Scott Atran (RCGD Adjunct Research Scientist) posted “What’s Really the Matter with Kansas and Cairo?” in the Huffington Post.
Daphna Oyserman (RCGD Research Professor) has been elected to the Michigan Society of Fellows.
Rowell Huesmann (RCGD Director and Research Professor) and Eric Dubow (RCGD Adjunct Research Scientist) along with their colleagues researching Video Game Violence were cited in an Oakland Press article, Do video games, movies make our children aggressive?.
Research by Emily Falk (RCGD Faculty Associate) is sited in the Huffington Post, Do anti-tobacco ads work? Ask a ‘neural focus group.’
Shinobu Kitayama (RCGD Research Professor) has been elected to one of the nation’s most prestigious honorary societies - the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
Sela Panapasa (RCGD Research Assistant Professor) was the key note speaker at the “Transforming Knowledge Focus of HRC Pacific Health Research” conference hosted by the Health Research Council of New Zealand.
Israel Liberzon (RCGD Faculty Associate) was interviewed by ABC News Radio Sgt. Robert Bales-PTSD Link at Odds with Research
Research about preference conducted by Ed O’Brien (Graduate Student in Psychology) and Phoebe Ellsworth (RCGD Faculty Associate) was highlighted in several media outlets including NPR, Why the best chocolate is the one you eat last.
Jeffrey Sanchez-Burks (RCGD Faculty Associate) co-authored an article for the New York Times, When Truisms are True.
Randy Nesse (RCGD Research Professor) is featured in Univ. of Michigan News Service article, Psychiatric diagnoses: Why no one is satisfied.
Denise Sekaquaptewa (RCGD Faculty Associate) will receive The Sarah Goddard Power Award. This award is presented annually by the Univ. of Michigan's Academic Women's Caucus to individuals who have distinguished themselves through their leadership, scholarship and sustained service on behalf of women.
Several media outlets have published articles about recent research conducted by Sara Konrath (RCGD Assistant Research Scientist) and her colleagues: CNN Narcissistic men have higher levels of stress hormone; Huffington Post Men's Health: Narcissism may be bad news and Michigan Today Big head, bad health.
Sean Joe (RCGD Faculty Associate and PRBA Director for Training and Research) is quoted in a Huffington Post article, A hope that Don Cornelius' apparent suicide opens door on taboo topic, about the recent death of Don Cornelius and the stigma of suicide.
The New York Times cites a study on intelligence by Richard Nisbett (RCGD Research Professor), A Sharper Mind, Middle Age and Beyond.
The LIFE Interdisciplinary Graduate Training Program has been selected as the recipient of the APA Board of Educational Affairs Award to Advance Interdisciplinary Education and Training in Psychology! The award recognizes education and training programs in psychology that advance interdisciplinary, multidisciplinary, or inter-professional teaching, research or practice in psychology at the K-12, undergraduate, and graduate and postdoctoral levels.
The UM Record Update Online highlights Norbert Schwarz (RCGD Research Professor) and Stephen Garcia (RCGD Faculty Associate), who provide research advice when it comes to gift giving.
Sela Panapasa (RCGD Assistant Research Scientist) received the 2011 Health Disparities Research Leadership Award in recognition of her contributions to improving Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander health.
Jacque Eccles, RCGD Research Professor, is appointed interim director of IRWG (the Institute for Research on Women and Gender), effective October 1, 2012. Jacque will serve in this role for one year. The Institute for Research on Women and Gender communicates important advances in empirical and theoretical scholarship on gender and women to the public.
The New York Times quotes Randolph Nesse, professor of psychiatry and psychology, and research professor for the Research Center for Group Dynamics, on the effect Richard Dawkins' book “The Selfish Gene” had on evolutionary science.
The National Coalition for Literacy (NCL) presented its 2011 NCL Literacy Leadership Awards on Sept 14, 2011 at a ceremony in Washington, DC to Jere Johnston (RCGD Research Professor). The awards recognize individual and/or organizations that have made extraordinary national contributions to improving adult literacy and English language learning in the United States. Professor Johnston is recognized for his work with John Fleischman to create USA LEARNS, the online interactive English language learning site. This site is free to learners who wish to improve their literacy skills and English language proficiency through independent study. It receives more than 11,000 visitors each day.
The Times of India and other media quoted Sara Konrath, research assistant professor at the Research Center for Group Dynamics and adjunct assistant professor of psychology, about her study into the effects that motivations behind volunteering can have on a person's lifespan.
Beverly Strassmann research with the Dogon Tribe in Africa is the topic of "Raising a Child Doesn't Take a Village" published in the Toronto Star. Strassmann also speaks about her work in this video.
Research conducted by Richard Nisbett (RCGD Research Professor) is highlighed in MSN article, "For Men, 'Culture of Honor' Can be Deadly."
Teach Yourself to be Wiser, a video highlighting research by Ethan Kross (RCGD Faculty Associate), is highlighted in Michigan Today article.
The TV Program “Out of the Blue” produced by the University of Michigan’s Office of Communications, broadcast an episode on Emily Falk's (RCGD Faculty Associate) research, "Neuroscience Communications Lab."
Jacque Eccles (RCGD Research Professor) was recently recognized with two awards: 1. The 2012 APA Division 7 "Urie Bronfenbrenner Award for Lifetime Contribution to Developmental Psychology in the Service of Science and Society." This award will be presented at the 2012 APA Convention in Orlando Florida where Jacque will give an invited address. 2. The Shavelson Award for Life Time Contributions to the Study of the Self from the International Self Research Society based at the University of Sydney, Australia.
Ryan Bremner (RCGD Grad Student) was mentioned in UM Online Record. Research on prayer that he and Brad Bushman (RCGD Adjunct Faculty Associate and OSU Professor) conducted is highlighted in the online “National Post.” The study was also covered by the APA Monitor and Reuters along with several other media outlets.
The UM Record Online noted that Richard Nisbett (RCGD Research Professor) was quoted in an article entitled “What Does IQ Really Measure” in ScienceNOW.
Research conducted by Shinobu Kitayama (RCGD Research Professor) and Jinkyung Na (DSRA) has been highlighted in a recent Psychological Science press release. Live Science also highlights the research in "Culture Influences Judgement of Others."
Daphne C. Watkins (RCGD Faculty Associate and Assistant Professor, School of Social Work) has been elected Vice-President of the American Men’s Studies Association. The American Men’s Studies Association mission is to advance the critical study of men and masculinities by encouraging the development of teaching, research, and clinical practice in the field of men’s studies. Daphne is the first women ever elected to serve in this capacity in the organization’s 20 year history.
Jeffrey Sanchez-Burks (RCGD Faculty Associate) is key note speaker at the March Michigan Diversity Council meeting.
“Why War is Never Really Rational” by Scott Atran (RCGD Adjunct Research Scientist) is published in The Huffington Post. A related article, "The Sacred Rules of War", is published at The National Interest.
Ethan Kross (RCGD Faculty Associate) is mentioned in today’s UM Record Online for an article appearing in USA TODAY about the link between social rejection and physical pain. At least 400 news outlets covered this story including BBC radio and Reuters.
Article about Japanese and American reactions to tsunami and nuclear disaster in the LA Times quotes, Professor Shinobu Kitayama.
Distinguished University Professor lecture, Two Roads Diverged in a Yellow Wood, given by Jacque Eccles, is discussed in an article in the Univ. Record.
The Economist published a piece with Jonathon P. Schuldt, Sara Konrath, and Norbert Schwarz on beliefs about climate change; forthcoming in the scholarly journal, Public Opinion Quarterly.
Melissa Gross from the University of Michigan will be the last speaker for the Winter Group Dynamics Seminar Series on Monday, April 18th. The title of the talk will be "Moving While Feeling: Expressing Emotion in Body Movements". Phoebe Ellsworth and Sara Konrath organized this series which was titled,"Emotion.."
Michael Varnum, graduate student in psychology, and Shinobu Kitayama, professor of psychology and faculty associate of the Research Center for Group Dynamics, told LiveScience about their study showing that regional cultures in the U.S. influence the names that parents give their children.
RCGD Research Scientist, Scott Atran's views on violent extremism, events in Egypt, etc. are discussed on American Public Radio's and National Public Radio's Krista Tippett, "On Being: Demonstrations, Hopes and Dreams". His book, Talking to the Enemy, is reviewed in The Guardian and the London Review of Books. Along with Jeremy Ginges, Scott Atran was featured in the article, "Science Says: War is the Irrational Choice", in AAAS Science.
James Jackson (ISR Director & RCGD Research Professor) will be awarded the Pearmain Prize for Excellence in Research on Aging from the University of Southern California. The Pearmain Prize for Excellence in Research on Aging honors scholars who best exemplify outstanding contributions to the field of translational aging research and its import to issues directly relating to older people.
The New York Times published Scott Atran's op-ed, "Egypt's Bumbling Brotherhood".
Emily Falk's research is featured in NSF video, "Brain Scan Can Tell if a Smoker Will Quit".
Research conducted by Professor Colleen Seifert, RCGD Faculty Associate, was recently highlighted in a USNews & World Report article, "Careful Actions Can Lead to Good Luck."
Scott Atran, RCGD Adjunct Research Scientist, is cited in the Monitor on Psychology’s article, “Reason to Believe.”
Shinobu Kitayama, RCGD Research Professor, was interviewed about his work on cultural neuroscience by FPR.
James Jackson was given a Lifetime Achievement Award in Biomedical Sciences from the New York Academy of Medicine at a ceremony held on November 16. The award is the academy's oldest, since 1929, and has been received by Nobel Laureates and other eminent scientists in biomedicine. James is the first social scientist to receive this award.
Research conducted by Thomas Fuller-Rowell (Post-doc Scholar in Achievement Research) is highlighted in Science Daily article, “Social Costs of School Success are highest for blacks.”
The article, “Your Brain on Culture,” in the Monitor on Psychology highlights the work at RCGD’s Center for Culture, Mind, and the Brain, directed by Shinobu Kitayama (RCGD Research Professor).
Research conducted by Oscar Ybarra (RCGD Faculty Associate), Gene Burnstein (RCGD Research Scientist), Piotr Winkielman and Irene Yeh showing that conversation can boost brain power made news. A few of the several outlets for this story are: the Wall Street Journal, AOL News, Science Daily, Bloomberg Business Week, CBC News and US News & World Report.
Sara Konrath, RCGD Research Assistant Professor, was interviewed on MSNBC TV about her research on empathy.
Research conducted by Sean Joe (RCGD Faculty Associate and PRBA Associate Director of Teaching & Training) was highlighted in a recent Our Weekly article, "African American Males & Suicide: Changing Attitudes Require a New Look."
Scott Atran, RCGD Adjunct Research Scientist, newly published book is entitled, “Talking to the Enemy: Faith Brotherhood, and the (Un)Making of Terrorists.” He also discusses the breeding of terrorism in Muslim communities from Indonesia to Morocco on MSNBC ‘s Morning Joe program.
Research conduct by Joshua Rabinowitz (RCGD Assistant Research Scientist) and colleague Terri Conley was highlighted in the UM News Service article, "15 years later: O.J. Simpson still divides or connects people."
Work by Norbert Schwarz and Spike Lee that finds people need to clean the body part that lies is highlighted by several news sources, the U-M News Service, The Globe and Mail, Full Frontal Psychology, and AOL Health. The study was published in the October 2010 Psychological Science journal.
Research by Sela Panapasa in the article, “Native Hawaiians: Vulnerability to early death at all ages” is distributed by the UM News Service. She is also cited in the Time magazine article, “Paradise Paradox: Why Life in Hawaii Leads to Early Death.”
Research done in a study led by Rowell Huesmann and Eric Dubow, which studies the effects of exposure to violence on Israeli and Palestinian children, is highlighted by the Univ. of Michigan news service, “How Palestinian and Israeli children are being psychologically scarred by exposure to war: U-M study”.
Newsweek article, "Why Islamists Love the World Cup: Jihadist are some of the most artdent fans of the world's most popular sport," quotes Scott Atran, who has studied the interplay between terror groups and soccer.